The elderly crafter guided Hyejin and Asha to his room, not far from the entrance.
Once Asha and Hyejin entered the room, he pressed a switch under the desk to make the entire room opaque.
Hyejin let out a small gasp of admiration, and he chuckled.
“It’s completely soundproof, so feel free to speak comfortably.”
Asha nodded and glanced at Hyejin, as if signaling her to continue the explanation.
Since it was an item Hyejin had thought of, her eyes seemed to believe that Hyejin could explain it better than she could.
“A complex item, you say?”
The crafter looked at Hyejin and asked again.
Hyejin cautiously began to speak.
“I mentioned earlier that I’m working as a convenience store manager.”
“Yes, you did.”
His tone was somewhat stiff, but not unkind.
Hyejin straightened her posture and continued speaking clearly while looking at the crafter.
“While doing my job, I started thinking, what if there was a magical delivery item that could deliver convenience store products inside the dungeon? The convenience store I run is located at the dungeon entrance, but it seems inconvenient for people to go deep into the dungeon and then come back out just to use the store.”
“If it’s about going back and forth, aren’t there movement artifacts for that?”
“That’s true, but this is for times when even that feels too bothersome.”
The crafter shrugged.
He didn’t seem to relate to what Hyejin was saying.
If they were in a hurry, they could just use an artifact to exit the dungeon or stop by the store.
A magical delivery item.
He had never imagined such an item because he had never considered the necessity.
Seeing the crafter’s peculiar expression, Hyejin cleared her throat and continued.
“What I initially thought of was a delivery system. Rather than creating a separate system, we could use existing delivery apps, right? These days, everything gets delivered.”
“That’s right. I think that would be much more efficient.”
“The issue is that my place is inside a dungeon, and our customer base is solely hunters.”
“Could you explain that in a bit more detail?”
The crafter still wasn’t fully grasping Hyejin’s point.
Even so, he seemed interested in her explanation.
Noticing the crafter’s interest, Hyejin smiled while looking at him.
“Convenience stores basically have only one employee per shift. Plus, since it’s inside the dungeon, I can’t hire delivery personnel. If the single employee has to move for deliveries, no one can use the store in the meantime. It’s too inconvenient, and that reduces practicality.”
“I see.”
“So, I thought about it. Even though it’s an era where you can move anywhere with artifacts, it fundamentally relies on mana usage. If mana is going to be used anyway, it would be better if people didn’t have to move. Let me give an example.”
“Hunters who have just finished an intense battle are sprawled out in the middle of the dungeon, without the strength to lift a finger. It would be great to have just one energy bar or a potion that boosts stamina, but they have nothing left. What if, in that situation, they could summon a potion right in front of them with the press of a button?”
Before she knew it, Hyejin was getting excited.
It was as if the scene she was describing was unfolding right before her eyes.
“Of course, they could squeeze out their remaining strength and use an artifact to come to the store. But if there was a delivery system, it would be much more helpful. Not only that, but what about when someone suddenly gets injured in battle? Using up remaining stamina is risky anyway, but if they could get essential items like hemostatic agents or bandages with just a tiny bit of mana?”
“Oh ho.”
Not only the elderly crafter but even Asha looked slightly impressed, making Hyejin feel inexplicably proud.
They probably didn’t expect her to have thought this far.
“There are so many delivery apps these days. Big chain companies even make their own apps. I want to adapt those and create a delivery app just for our convenience store. So that by infusing mana into the magical formula in the app, anyone can send and receive deliveries no matter where they are.”
“Hmm… Come to think of it, my wife is getting on in years and her stamina is waning, so she has trouble going shopping herself and relies a lot on those apps. Watching her order things, I did feel how simple and convenient it is.”
“Yes! I want to provide that kind of convenience to hunters too.”
Hyejin was overjoyed that someone other than herself was agreeing with her idea.
And since he was sympathizing with the delivery app, it seemed like a good time to discuss what she had thought of after hearing the reception employee’s story.
“And I don’t know if I should say this, but… I heard that a specially made gun was stolen from the crafting company this time.”
The crafter flinched at Hyejin’s words.
Then, he smiled awkwardly and replied.
“So you know about it. Well, since you came with Asha, you must have heard.”
Hyejin nodded and continued.
“So, what if the crafting company tried using the magical delivery item I’m commissioning?”
The crafter’s eyes widened at the unexpected suggestion.
“I heard that because the products don’t have barcodes, you couldn’t tell if they were stolen. Hearing that made me think there might be some regret about the system where people commissioning items have to come in person to request and pick them up.”
Hyejin was right.
For commissioned products, the ordering hunters had to come here to receive the finished items.
This theft incident had arisen because of that.
If they hadn’t come to the workshop and seen the gun in the first place, they couldn’t have stolen it.
The workshop was especially defenseless.
It was basically an open system so that crafters could check each other’s products and offer assistance or advice, but that made it vulnerable to theft.
That said, changing the system itself would require an enormous amount of time and effort to modify the established setup.
“I can’t deny what you’re saying, but we can’t fix this system.”
The reason crafters met with the commissioning hunters was to show them the items directly and explain how to use them.
Also, if hunters mentioned any shortcomings or additional needs, they could apply them on the spot.
But they never dreamed that such sincere intentions would lead to a theft incident.
“So, I’m worried a lot about whether similar incidents will keep happening in the future.”
“I’m not saying this to force it on you. But if there was a delivery app, customers wouldn’t have to visit here to pick up items, so I thought it might help. If quick communication is needed, you could add a unique feature for the workshop, like video conferencing.”
“Video conferencing, you say?”
“Yes! The app is basically downloaded and used on a phone, and phones have cameras attached. While working, you could explain directly, discuss improvements, and ultimately just deliver the finished product—wouldn’t that be good?”
Listening to Hyejin, the elderly crafter nodded without realizing it.
“That might be worth discussing. It could be a bit lacking compared to meeting in person and talking, but it seems like a decent alternative.”
At the crafter’s words, Hyejin nodded with a fairly serious expression.
“I’ll use the commissioned item for my own needs, but I don’t want to be the only one using it. Since the delivery system itself is the same, if you can create an app that allows exchanging items using mana, for us, please proceed in the direction of adding that function to a supermarket delivery app. And if you’re making it for the crafters, how about adapting it into an app just for this company?”
Hyejin was sincere.
She hadn’t thought of it before hearing about the theft, but she didn’t want to create something solely for her own benefit.
The delivery system she had thought of—more precisely, the product idea she got from the young hunter with the cute round glasses—she wanted it to help many people.
“I’m not a crafter, so I can’t fully understand your feelings, but I know that you crafters do your best for the hunters. The item I’m describing will definitely help hunters too. So, please take good care of it.”
The crafter couldn’t answer right away and pondered.
Since it was a convenience store, they were probably already using them, but delivery items were already in common use in society.
The problem was that both sides needed to have large delivery items.
What Hyejin wanted wasn’t such heavy, immobile items.
“I can’t confidently say we can make it. It would require a lot of meetings and collaboration among crafters, so it might take a lot of time.”
Hyejin nodded emphatically, as if to say it was no problem.
If it took too long, she might not receive it within the year she could work, but the convenience store would continue business even after she quit.
She wanted to leave behind an item that would help the store if possible.
So, Hyejin replied.
“As long as you make it, I’ll wait as long as it takes.”
When Hyejin spoke with the brightest face she could muster, the elderly crafter gave a faint smile.